


Take A Chance

by htbthomas



Category: Raising Hope (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, First Kiss, Sweet, Yuletide 2011
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-11
Updated: 2011-12-11
Packaged: 2017-10-27 04:45:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/291756
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/htbthomas/pseuds/htbthomas
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Pretending to be married is getting to be a habit with Jimmy and Sabrina.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Take A Chance

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LovelyPoet](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LovelyPoet/gifts).



> Thank you so much to my beta, coldriverblue!

The _second_ time it happens, it catches Jimmy by surprise.  He’s just walking along the baby aisle in the grocery store on his day off, carrying Hope in one arm and trying to decide which of the cheap diapers will make her smell less like burning plastic, when he hears a voice he thought he’d never hear again.  

“Jimmy?  Is that you? Jimmy Chance?”

He turns toward the voice with a look of shock. “Tori?”

She’s still gorgeous, and still _way_ out of his league.  He can never figure out what she saw in him the one and only time they went out.  He thought she went off to that fancy State College or something.  What was she doing back?

She smiles, and her blonde hair seems to sparkle under the fluorescent lights. “Aw.” She puts a manicured hand on her heart. “You remember me.”

“Oh, of course I remember you, Tori.  How could I forget?” Especially the way she broke his heart.

“You’re so sweet. And it’s Victoria these days.  Better for business.” She leans down and gets nose-to-nose with Hope. “Who is this sweetie pie? Not _yours_ , is she?”

“She is,” he says proudly. “All mine.” As she coos at Hope, his curiosity gets the better of him and he asks, “So what are you doing back in town?”

“Oh, just visiting the folks, you know.  Even realtors need a break sometimes.”

Jimmy’s eyes widen. A realtor. She’d hit the big time. “I bet.”

“So... who’s the lucky mom?”

Jimmy’s face freezes. He’s so used to everyone he knows knowing about Hope’s serial killer mom that he forgets about it sometimes. “Um, well, it’s kind of a funny story.” He rubs at the back of his head with one hand. “Well, not _funny_ as much as–”

“Hilarious!” Sabrina says, coming from behind him and threading her hand through his elbow. “Can you imagine? Meeting your husband in the grocery store?”

Jimmy whips his head toward Sabrina, who is smiling serenely toward Tori, um, Victoria. Pretending to be married? Again? Not that he really minds her hand on his arm, but...

Victoria smiles back, though not as brightly. “Oh?”

“Yes! I was this bored and lonely check out girl, Jimmy was the sweetheart who needed to find the...” She draws out the word, her hasty story already falling apart.

“The power tools!” Jimmy throws in. It sounds impressive to him.

“Uh...” she says, giving him an odd look. “Yeah. Back when we _used_ to have a hardware section.”

Oh. Right. This isn’t one of those super-all-in-one-markets they have in the big city.  He gives her an apologetic look.

“How... sweet,” Victoria says.

Sabrina steps forward and holds out her hand. “Hi, I’m Sabrina.  And you are?”

“Victoria Nichols. Old friend of Jimmy’s.  Nice to meet you and your adorable little girl.”

“She is, isn’t she?” Sabrina says so honestly that he’d almost believe she was really Hope’s mother himself.

“It looks like you did well for yourself, Jimmy Chance. Some people have all the luck.”  Victoria looks at her watch and then tsks. “I’d better get what I came for and then get back to the folks.” She takes a step forward and rubs Hope’s head of soft blonde hair. “Stay cute, little one. Bye, Jimmy!”  She breezes past them and quickly lifts a package of adult diapers on her way out of the aisle.

As soon as she’s out of sight, Jimmy rounds on Sabrina. “What was that for?”

Sabrina shrugs. “It looked like you needed saving.”

He frowns. “It did?”

“I know the type. All sweetness and light when she wants something from you. And then...” Sabrina claps her hands together like a Venus flytrap. “Snap!”

Jimmy flinches a little. And looking down the aisle after Victoria, he can see Sabrina may be right. Maybe being a hotshot realtor isn’t working out the way Victoria thought and... well, he couldn’t really figure out how he could help Victoria. Just like he never figured out why she wanted to go out with him that time in high school.

“Well, then, thanks,” he tells Sabrina.

“Any time. ‘Hubby.’” She winks and heads off toward the registers.  

Hope giggles and Jimmy’s heart flutters in time with her laughter.

* * *

The next time it happens, it’s Jimmy’s idea. Or fault, he isn’t quite sure which.  He’s come to the registers for a price check, and sees a burly older guy leaning over Sabrina as she tries to ring up his order. She looks super-uncomfortable – why doesn’t she just tell him to buzz off?

He passes along the price check information and gets closer to listen in. “C’mon. Just one little drink,” the guy is saying.

Sabrina doesn’t even look at him. “I told you. I’m taken. And I’m not interested.  Even if weren’t taken, and I _did_ go for guys my dad’s age – and I don’t – I’m not a big fan of the bathed in Drakkar Noir thing you’ve got going.”

He leans in closer, unfazed. “I can change my cologne, baby. I’ll bathe in whatever you want.”

Barney sidles up next to him. “What’s going on here?”

“Some guy hitting on Sabrina.”

“Oh?” Barney says, concerned. “She looks like she needs assistance.”  He takes a few steps toward them.

Jimmy stops him with a hand on his arm. “Lemme take this.” At Barney’s frown, he adds, “That is, if it’s okay.”

Barney sizes him up for a minute. “You know, I _have_ been thinking about who I might want to groom for assistant manager. Show me what you can do.”

Jimmy swallows.  That wasn’t his reason for wanting to step in at all. He nods anyway.

“Hey, Sabrina, what’s going on here?” he says, lowering the pitch of his voice to sound more confident.

“Nothing, Jimmy, I’m fine,” she says to him. To the guy, she says, “Sir, that’ll be $54.35.”

Jimmy laughs nervously. “Are you sure you’re fine?  Because you don’t look like you’re fine.”

“She’s fine,” the guy says with a leer. “ _Real_ fine.”

Jimmy can’t take it anymore. “You can’t talk about her or–or–talk _to_ her like that!”

“Oh, really?” he says, clearly not worried. He comes around to the other side of the counter. “Are who are _you_?”

Sabrina says, “Leave him alone, he’s just my–”

“Husband!” Jimmy finishes with a squeak.

That stops the guy for a moment. “Husband.” He doesn’t look like he’s buying it.

Sabrina cocks her head at Jimmy.   _Really_?

“Yes, I am.  She’s taken.  Didn’t you hear her the first time?”  He reaches over and takes her hand in his. “Do you want me to get rid of this joker for you?” He’s hoping he doesn’t look as crazy around the eyes as he feels. ‘Cause he’s not completely sure what he could do if the guy doesn’t leave.

She relaxes a little, giving in to the ruse. “No, honey.  I’m sure he’ll eventually get the...” She swings her head toward the guy and glares. “... _hint_.”

The glare must be enough, because he takes a step back, hands raised in surrender. “Okay, okay. I give.” He glances at his bags of groceries. “How about a little cart service?”

This time Jimmy adds to Sabrina’s glare.  

Barney swoops in and takes over. “I’ll be happy to escort you to your car, sir!” They only have to wait a couple of awkward minutes where no one meets anyone else’s eyes before Barney’s out the door with the guy.

“I’m sorry,” Jimmy says. “You didn’t need my help after all.” He starts to walk away.

“Wait,” she says, and he turns toward her hopefully. “I didn’t...” She smiles. “...but thanks.”

“Any time.” He grins.  

Barney strides back to Sabrina’s register just then. “Not bad, James.” He wrinkles up his face. “Not sure I would have employed the same technique...”

* * *

After that it gets a lot easier, and sometimes happens for a lot less reason.

“...Oh, this?  Um... it’s my _husband_ who has a little fungus problem...”

“...Officer, I promise, I was just sitting here waiting for my wife to run a quick errand inside...”

“...awesome, this place _does_ have an anniversary special! We’ll have the sirloin-steak-for-two, please.”

And even when it’s for a good reason, Jimmy starts to wonder why “pretending to be married” is becoming their standby.

“This _is_ the guy I was telling you about, Grams.” Sabrina grabs his hand and pulls him close. “We’re really happy.” Jimmy gives her a goofy smile that is mostly not faked. Especially when she holds his hand throughout most of the visit to the retirement community.

As they’re walking to the car, hands now apart, Jimmy says with an awkward laugh, “It’s kinda funny, isn’t it?”

Sabrina unlocks the door and gets in. “Funny how?”

“You know, how easy it is to do that.  Pretend to be married and all?”

He expects her to laugh, but instead she gets very quiet. “Mm.”

He’s sorry he brought it up. “I’m sorry, did I say the wrong thing?”

“No...” She smiles at him to show him she’s not upset or mad. “No, you didn’t.  But it _is_ kinda weird how often we’re doing that lately.”

“Yeah, it is.  That’s really what I was trying to say–”

“–if Wyatt were home more often, I wouldn’t need you to do it.”

Jimmy frowns.  Always Wyatt. “I...” He takes a deep breath. “I don’t mind doing it, Sabrina. Not for you.  Besides, it’s kinda fun pretending to be something you’re not, like, you know, being a movie actor...”

“...or a spy.”

“Even better.” He grins.

“And I don’t mind doing it for you, either, Jimmy.” She reaches over and gives him a squeeze on the knee.  

The spot tingles the rest of the way home.

* * *

“Oh my god, _what_ is that noise?” Sabrina says, covering her ears with a wince as she walks into the house a few days later.

“Oh! Sorry about that!” Virginia yells over the sound of several tea kettles screaming at full volume.  She runs over to the stove and shuts them off as quickly as she can.  Pulling a couple of makeshift earplugs out, she says, “I was so used to the sound that I didn’t realize how loud they were.”

“But... why?” Sabrina asks. She wants to ask if the Chances are having the world’s biggest tea party, but she wouldn’t be surprised if something like that were true.

“Trying to fill the house up with steam. Hope’s got a cold, and we can’t afford one of them fancy humiliators.”

Sabrina smiles but doesn’t correct her. “I see.  Poor thing. Isn’t... isn’t the gas to run the stove more expensive in the long run?”

Virginia opens her mouth, then closes it with a frown. “Shoot.” She shrugs and makes herself an actual cup of tea. “I guess I’ll have to start sneaking her into my clients’ bathrooms during the day...”

“Where’s Jimmy?”

“He and Hope are at the free clinic.  No telling when they’ll be back.  Place has a line around the block some days.”

“Oh.” Hope’s cold must have taken a turn for the worse. Can Jimmy afford the antibiotics? She readjusts her purse strap over her shoulder and heads for the door. “Where’s the clinic?”

“He’s probably at the one on the corner of Maple and University, next to the Sheetz.  No, wait!” She stops Sabrina before she’s all the way out the door. “I bet it’s the one by the Goodwill on Parker.”  Sabrina nods her thanks and keeps walking. “You know they’ll be home later today, right?” she calls.

“Yeah, that’s okay. Got nothing else to do.” She waves behind her and gets into her car.  She doesn’t see Virginia’s knowing smile as she closes the screen door.

Jimmy’s van isn’t at either location.  Sighing, Sabrina turns her car around to go home, then sees the van out of the corner of her eye. He’s at the Rite Aid a couple blocks down.  Maybe she’s not too late...

She finds Jimmy and Hope not in the pharmacy, but looking at toddler toys in the baby section.  Hope is sitting on the floor, bundled up in about three sets of clothing and chewing on a plush cat.

“Oh, Jimmy...” she chides him, gently swiping the toy out of Hope’s mouth. Hope whines but then starts coughing. “Who knows what kind of germs are on that?

“Sabrina! Funny seeing you here,” he says, his face lighting up. “And yeah, I know, but I figure she’s already sick...”

She drops the toy in his basket – he can always give it a hot wash at home later – then she nods toward the pharmacy. “Picking up a prescription?”

He fumbles with a bag she didn’t see him holding and pulls out a bottle. “Already got it free at the clinic.  She needs her next dose in six hours. We’re just, you know, window shopping.” He smiles guiltily. “It’s fun sometimes, but it’s hard on Hope.  She’s too little to know the difference between ‘store toys’ and ‘garage sale discount toys’ yet.”

Sabrina glances at the tag, and takes the toy out of the basket. “Let Auntie Sabrina get it for her.” She can handle a five dollar stuffed cat. Really, she can handle a lot more than that. Before he can protest, she adds, “It’s kinda too bad we’re not actually married.”

“Yeah...” Jimmy says and then does a double take. “Wha-what?”

She’s not really sure why the thought came to her in the first place, but now she has to go with it. “Well, then we’d have two incomes. And um,” she points at the antibiotics, “I’ve got pretty good insurance, too – my dad knows a guy.  If we were married you – and Hope – would be covered.”

“Wha.. I.. uh...” Jimmy can’t seem to string two words together. And when did she start to find his awkward stammers so cute?

“Just yanking your chain,” she says, patting his cheek lightly. “Let’s go buy this and get her back home in bed, okay?”

Later she comes back and buys the humidifier she saw on the way in. If the box looks beat up enough, they’ll believe it was a dumpster diamond.

* * *

A couple weeks pass.  Sabrina’s starting to think she spooked Jimmy at the drugstore. They haven’t had a decent conversation that isn’t directly about work for days. She hadn’t really meant anything by it, and she’s not even sure why pretending to be married has been so easy to do, anyway. In hindsight, it’s a pretty crappy thing to do to Jimmy.  After all, she has a boyfriend. And she’s suspected for a long time that Jimmy might have more feelings for her than just friendship. She’s never wanted to lead him on, not with Wyatt in her life.  It’s just so easy to be around Jimmy compared to Wyatt. Jimmy means so much to her she doesn’t want to ruin what they have.  

She decides then and there that she’s going to go apologize. All the pretending was just a silly game – maybe it’s time for the games to stop.

She finds him in the produce section, carefully stacking the melons. “Oh, hi,” he says when he sees her. “I’m thinking of going for a double pyramid today.  What d’you think?”

“Maybe Mayan instead?”

“Your pyramid? How is that different?”

She opens her mouth to correct him, but then thinks better of it. She needs to stay on track. “A double pyramid is a great idea, actually. Go with that.”

He nods and stacks another melon.

“You know, Jimmy, I’ve been thinking, and I need to tell you something...”

“Tell me what...?” he says, still distracted.

“How sorry I am.”

He turns and gives her a confused look. “For what?”

“Just all the pretend-married stuff. It wasn’t nice, or fair to you.  I’m sorry I started it.”  She places an apologetic hand on his arm.

“No, no, I was the one who started it, remember? My parents trying to impress my dad’s folks?” He puts down the melon in his hand and puts his hand on her arm as well. “And it was kinda nice.” He smiles, completely free of guile.

She finds herself smiling back at him. He’s so sweet, so uncomplicated...

An enraged voice sounds behind them. “So it _is_ true!”

They spin toward the sound.  Jimmy’s elbow hits a carefully stacked pile of melons, which go rolling off the display and onto the floor in all directions. Sabrina’s face flushes when she realizes who it is.

“Wyatt? What are you...?”

He takes a couple of angry steps toward them. “Coming to surprise my girlfriend at work.  I _thought_.”  He glares at Jimmy, who is busily trying to clean up the melons, but dropping more than he can pick up.

“What do you mean?” Sabrina says, her ire rising.  She and Jimmy hadn’t been doing anything wrong just then.  Or ever, really. Pretending was just pretending.  She hadn’t once acted on the changing feelings in her heart.  Yet. “You can’t just come in here and disrupt my workplace!” They are starting to draw a crowd.  Frank is looking on with interest, and one of the stockgirls gets down off her ladder to come closer. Barney will be here in moments, if not sooner.

“I’m talking about...” He points at Jimmy. “...your _husband_!”

There are a couple of shocked gasps. “Dude,” Frank says, sounding pleased. “You never told me!”

Wyatt clenches his fists. “I couldn’t believe it when I heard the rumors, and now...?”

“Rumors? You came all the way from college to see if some rumors were true?” She can’t believe it. He’s too busy to come see her when she needs him, but _this_ is what finally gets him to come? She steps over the rolling melons to face him. “I don’t have a husband.  Look!” She holds her hand up in his face to show him her wedding ring-less finger. “I only have a boyfriend, and that’s _you_.”

“Yeah,” Jimmy says from the floor, where he’s still trying to wrangle the melons, “It was just a bit! We weren’t really married or anything. We were just pretend–” His voice drops to a mumble as he seems to realize he isn’t helping. “–pretending.”

“Nice,” Frank says. “Tell me you at least got a little pretend kissing in.”

They both turn to Frank and shout, “No!”

“Not on the lips, anyway,” Jimmy says in a quiet voice.

She looks back at Wyatt’s face, which is almost apoplectic with rage. “ _Pretending_ to be married?”

Sabrina presses her lips together. “Yes.” There’s murmuring from their ever-growing audience. “Which I wouldn’t have to _do_ if you were ever around.”

“Why do you ever have to do it at all?”

Even though she was just asking herself the same question earlier today, hearing it from Wyatt just infuriates her, just like everything he does lately. She growls slightly, completely fed up. “I don’t know.  Why do I do anything? You’re never happy with it, anyway.”

“What?” Wyatt asks. This is obviously not going the way he expected.

“In fact,” she says, angry tears coming to her eyes, “my _pretend_ husband treats me a whole heck of a lot better than my _real_ boyfriend ever has!”

“Babe...” he says, reaching for her.

“No!” She pushes his hands away. “This is it, Wyatt. The end.  You don’t respect me, you don’t trust me. You don’t care enough to be near me, except when you think you’re going to look bad!  Goodbye.”  She walks away, pushing through the crowd, not sure where she’s going – just anywhere but here.

* * *

Jimmy finally finds her car at his house.  After getting out of the van, he walks quietly up to the house and peers through the window.  She’s sitting on the couch with his dad, head on his shoulder.  Burt looks absolutely content, passing her another tissue from the box.

“I’ve just been waiting and waiting,” she says between sniffles, “and for what? To have him treat me like I’m some lying tramp?”

“You’re not a tramp,” Burt says.

“No, I’m _not_.”

“I don’t like that word, anyway. People used to call Virginia that, and I’ve never known a more loyal and loving woman.”

Sabrina looks up at him with a tearful smile. “You know what, Burt? If I ever do get married for real, I hope it’s to someone like you.”

He gives her a hug around her shoulders. “Thanks, sweetie. I know you will.” Then he turns his head to look straight out the window at Jimmy. “And I bet he’s closer than you think.”

Jimmy ducks down out of sight before Sabrina can see him. Looks like this is his cue. He sneaks down the steps and back to his van, where he opens and closes the drivers’ side door extra loudly. “Sabrina!” he calls, walking toward the house. “Sabrina, are you here?” He stomps up the steps and onto the porch for good measure.

“I’m in here,” she calls weakly.

“Are you okay?” he asks as he opens the door. “Everyone at Howdy’s is worried about you.”

“I’m okay,” she says, giving him a brave smile. “But what about you? Did Wyatt try anything?”

“Oh, no. After you left, Barney and Frank and some of the other guys threw him out.” He sits down on the other side of Sabrina. “Made sure he got in his truck and drove away, too.”

“I’m so sorry I got you in the middle of that.”

“No, it’s okay. I’d get right back in the middle again if it meant I was helping you.”

“Thank you, Jimmy.”

Burt slips out then to let them talk alone, patting Jimmy’s shoulder as he passes by.  Jimmy knows what that pat means – _Now’s your chance, my boy. Take it._

“Sabrina, I don’t know if this is the right time or not, but...” He sits up straighter to buck up his courage. “I’ve been wanting to tell you for a long time.”

“Jimmy, I...”

“No, let me get this out or I’ll never say it at all. Ever since the first day I met you at the register at Howdy’s, I’ve liked you. Not just as a friend.  But you’ve become my best friend in the world anyway.  And you know what? I think that’s the best way.  You gotta _like_ the person that you m–” He claps a hand over his mouth.

“Jimmy...”

“I’m sorry. I’m just trying to tell you how much I like you, and I go off jumping the gun...”

“Jimmy!”

He stops talking, hanging his head in shame.

“Jimmy...” She takes his hand in hers. “I know.”

He looks at her, not daring to hope. “You do?”

“I have for a while. And I think I know why you waited to tell me.”

“Wyatt,” he says at the same time she says, “Me.”

She laughs. “Well, that, too.  But you needed to know if I felt the same.” She squeezes his hand. “Right?”

He nods.

“I do.  I like you a lot, Jimmy.”

A glow of happiness threatens to burst from his chest. “You do?”

“I do. I don’t know when it happened, but I’ve _liked_ you for a while now.”  She starts to lean toward him, eyes closed.

Suddenly Jimmy doesn’t know what to do: he just watches her come toward him.  

She stops, opens her eyes and sees his unsure expression. “You may kiss the girl,” she intones. Then winks. He smiles and takes the chance to do what he has wanted to do for so long...

When they break apart, she says, “You know, if I ever do get married, I don’t think I could make a better choice than you.”  

Maw Maw wanders into the room just then. “They _aren’t_ married?” she says with a snort. “With all the time she spends in this house, you coulda fooled me.”

 **End.**


End file.
